Inside the Institute

Hunger Hits Home: Documentary on Food Network

With Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign, there’s a lot of national attention around the 12.5 million American children who are obese. But it may surprise you that even more kids in our country—a staggering 16 million—struggle with hunger. Yesterday, Samantha Cassetty, our Nutrition Director, met with some of the people behind the scenes of Share Our Strength—a non-profit organization that aims to end childhood hunger in the U.S. by 2015. They shared a clip of Hunger Hits Home, a Food Network-produced documentary airing on the channel April 14. The show introduces you to some of the faces of hunger, but there was a familiar face in the room who also shared her personal account of growing up hungry—the emmy-nominated Food Network personality, Sandra Lee.

As Sandra reminded those of us in the room, the faces of hunger are everywhere. Maybe, as Sandra pointed out, it’s the receptionist who smiles at you as you check in to your next appointment. Or perhaps it’s the gentleman who checks you out at the grocery store. A steady job is not enough to guarantee a full cupboard. Hardworking people across the country are struggling to make ends meet, juggling the financial demands of mortgages, electric bills, medical bills, and more.

But there’s hope for these families. The Food Network film not only recounts several families’ experience with hunger but also the ways they navigated the system to find solutions. The show also shares motivating stories of anti-hunger activitists who are moving the needle on feeding the hungry in their communities. And you can help, too. Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign connects you with several ways to help with the goal of eradicating childhood hunger in America by 2015—like hosting a bake sale as part of the Great American Bake. Visit the site for other great ways to get involved. And if you’re taking the bake sale route, you may want to try Good Housekeeping's recipes for Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes, Butterscotch Blondies or Double Chocolate Chip Cookies—they’re triple tested so they’re guaranteed to work (and they taste great, too!) If you're looking to cart a big batch of cupcakes, check out our reviews of the best cupcake carriers.

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